


After All This Time

by raendown



Series: NaNoWriMo 2020 Drabbles [70]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Chronic Pain, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-13
Updated: 2019-11-13
Packaged: 2021-01-29 23:54:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 639
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21418786
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/raendown/pseuds/raendown
Summary: They're older now but their love remains the same.
Relationships: Haruno Sakura/Nara Shikamaru
Series: NaNoWriMo 2020 Drabbles [70]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1533161
Comments: 10
Kudos: 85





	After All This Time

“Do you plan on hitting every single bump in the road?” Sakura asked in a teasing voice. “Just so I can brace myself, of course.”

“Leave me be, woman, or I’ll make you push yourself.” Her husband’s voice scoffed with attitude but she did notice him suddenly weaving a little more in attempt to avoid the bumps and dips. It didn’t work very well since this was a dirt road and there was really no avoiding that sort of thing entirely but the effort was sweet.

They each held their comments as a gaggle of young children scrambled past with screaming voices letting out all the energy they had probably been keeping in all day at school and as soon as the sudden crowd had gone by Sakura looked over her shoulder to smile at Shikamaru.

“Oh to have so much energy again.”

“I don’t know, I kind of like having you right where I can find you all the time. Makes it easier to do this.” Shikamaru bent over the handles of the wheelchair and bussed a messy kiss against her cheek until she giggled just as loudly as the children had.

They had planned to have some of their own, of course, until this condition caught up with her and Sakura realized that to bear children would be to take her life in to her own hands. Adoption seemed a much safer option. But then her husband’s laziness had affected them both and they waited, they waited, and waited some more. Now here they were late in to their forties and as her bones creaked loudly at all hours of the day Sakura realized that maybe it was a good thing there weren’t any high-energy little feet around the house for her to try and keep up with.

She was just as happy to be the only one around for Shikamaru to pamper anyway.

“How’s the pain today, by the way?”

“I would say a good solid seven out of ten.”

“Not bad.” Shikamaru was smiling as he began to push her chair along the road again. “After spending all week in eights and nines I’m glad to see you down to seven. You could use a little break.”

“Hah! The only way I’ll get a break is if you break my spine so I can’t feel _anything_ anymore.” Sakura shook her head. It was good to be in a place of acceptance for herself where she could find moments to laugh at the pain that never went away even if it did want to make her cry. When the condition first struck her she’d contemplated much worse than breaking her own spine but with support from beautiful souls like her husband she had held on and it was simple days like today that made her glad she did.

If she hadn’t then she would have missed the love in Shikamaru’s eyes as they finally arrived at the little café where they had promised to meet with some friends. Not once through all the years had he ever complained about her low days, always insisting on pushing her chair ‘like a true gentleman’, and his support had never faltered. She owed so much more to him than she could ever say yet she knew he would never ask her to say it.

“You ready to listen to Naruto go on for three hours about the new flavor of ramen that Ichiraku’s put out?” her husband asked. Sakura snorted.

“Ready as I’ll ever be. I brought extra earplugs if you’d like a pair.”

He laughed even as he leaned down to give her one more kiss, sweeter than the last. “Always thinking about me. That’s why I love you.”

“I love you too,” she told him.

She was grateful that he knew just how much she meant that.


End file.
